Remember when teachers, public employees, libraries, Planned Parenthood, NPR and PBS crashed the stock market, wiped out half of our 401Ks, took trillions in TARP money, spilled oil in the Gulf of Mexico, gave themselves billions in bonuses, and paid no taxes? Yeah, me neither."

Friday, April 12, 2013

Bennett's one of several legitimate claimants to the cartooning mantel of the late Paul Conrad, of the LA Times. Others: Adam Zyglis in Buffalo, Jim Morin in Miami; Mike Lukovic in Atlanta; Tom Toles in DC; Horsey, wherever the hell he is...and Tom Tomorrow, though he's pretty much an internet phenom.Their draftsmanship is instantly recognizable, their observations are on point and acerbic, and their 'subjects' are chosen in timely and apt fashion.

It's been reported for weeks if not months that the only thing that might save Social Security is, oddly enough, the Republicans. Not out of principle or any concern for the common man, but simply out of refusal to work with Obama on his budget. LowBar and the Dims have shown they're more than willing to slash the social safety net. But in return, they want a few tax increases. And the Repubs are refusing to budge. So far.
Something else needs to emphasized, and repeated, again and again: Social Security does not and has never contributed to the deficit. Social Security is its own fund, separate from the rest of the federal budget. It has no borrowing authority. It has never borrowed money from anywhere else in the budget. By law, it can't. It can't and it doesn't. When people spout nonsense about SS contributing to the deficit, set them straight. The country is deficit-spending through trillions spent on things such as never-ending war and on bank bailouts, not because Ma and Pa Kettle are collecting $1,200 a month in Social Security.